Category Archives: Legal matters

Fifth Circuit extends hold on Biden employer vaccine mandate

Posted on November 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The worst court in America keeps on keeping on. A federal appeals court kept its block on the implementation on the Biden administration rule that requires large companies to mandate COVID-19 vaccines for employees or carry out weekly testing starting in January. … Continue reading →

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Bexar mask mandate back on

Posted on November 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Abbott and Paxton take another L. A temporary order that allows the City of San Antonio and Bexar County to require masks in their buildings will stay in place until a lawsuit challenging an executive order goes to trial in … Continue reading →

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State lawsuits against SB8 finally get a hearing

Posted on November 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

A long strange trip it has been. A state district judge on Wednesday morning heard arguments from abortion rights groups challenging Texas’ restrictive abortion law in what seems to be the first court hearing to specifically tackle the statute’s constitutionality. … Continue reading →

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Federal judge blocks Abbott’s ban on school mask mandates

Posted on November 12, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent news. A federal judge ruled Wednesday that Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order prohibiting mask mandates in schools violates the Americans with Disabilities Act — freeing local officials to again create their own rules. The order comes after a monthslong … Continue reading →

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We wait on the Fifth Circuit

Posted on November 11, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

They have received briefs and held a hearing about whether to keep or lift their hold on the Biden COVID vaccine mandate for employers. A coalition of businesses argued in federal court Tuesday that they would suffer “irreparable harm” if … Continue reading →

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Here come the AstroWorld lawsuits

Posted on November 9, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

As well they should. At least 34 Astroworld Festival attendees have sued or plan to sue the event promoter in what is expected to be a bevy of litigation related to the mayhem at NRG Park. At least eight people died and dozens more were injured Friday … Continue reading →

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SCOTx hears Chick-Fil-A case

Posted on November 9, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Missed this last week. The Supreme Court of Texas heard oral arguments Thursday in the now two-year-old case involving the exclusion of Chick-fil-A city contract in the San Antonio International Airport. […] San Antonio has always maintained that the law … Continue reading →

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Justice Department sues Texas over the voter suppression law

Posted on November 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Specifically, they are challenging a couple of specific provisions of the law. The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday sued Texas over its new voting law, expanding its effort to challenge Republican-backed measures passed in state legislatures. The lawsuit, brought by … Continue reading →

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Sen. Powell sues over SD10

Posted on November 5, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Number six and counting. Tarrant County state Sen. Beverly Powell filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against the state Senate redistricting plan, marking the latest court challenge to Texas’ Republican-drawn political maps that secure the GOP’s grip on power for the … Continue reading →

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The fight for free speech continues at Collin College

Posted on November 5, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

What awful leadership that place has. A year ago, Texas history professor Lora Burnett fired off an angry tweet from her private social media account about then-vice president Mike Pence. It landed during the vice presidential debate, prompting news coverage … Continue reading →

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A redistricting lawsuit twofer from MALC

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

One federal, one state. The Mexican American Legislative Caucus in the Texas House has opened a second front in the legal war over the state’s new political maps. The caucus on Wednesday turned to the state courts to challenge the … Continue reading →

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Hotze’s first attempt at defending himself in the Lopez/Aguirre lawsuit fails

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a long way to go on this, but at least for now the courts aren’t having any of Steven Hotze’s bullshit. A petition for mandamus was denied by the 14th Court of Appeals today – an appeal brought by … Continue reading →

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SB8’s day before SCOTUS

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The good guys appear to have the upper hand in this case. It seems unlikely that will last for very long, however. The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday grilled attorneys for abortion providers, the federal government and Texas over the … Continue reading →

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Trump Train lawsuit update

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

San Marcos Police Department, wyd? As supporters of then-President Donald Trump surrounded and harassed a Joe Biden campaign bus on a Central Texas highway last year, San Marcos police officials and 911 dispatchers fielded multiple requests for assistance from Democratic … Continue reading →

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Of course Texas sues over federal vaccination mandates

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

On brand. Always on brand. Attorney General Ken Paxton, on behalf of the state, sued the Biden administration on Friday over its coronavirus vaccine mandate for federal contractors. The federal requirement, which is set to take effect Dec. 8, calls … Continue reading →

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The SCOTUS hearing on SB8 is today

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I have no idea what to expect. The U.S. Supreme Court will take up on Monday the highest-profile legal challenges to Texas’ new abortion law. The Supreme Court previously declined to act on the near-total abortion ban, making next week’s … Continue reading →

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A brief update on the Gutierrez/Eckhardt redistricting lawsuit

Posted on October 31, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

First news we’ve had in awhile. Plaintiff: Democratic state Sens. Roland Gutierrez and Sarah Eckhardt What the lawsuit argues: Ahead of lawmakers’ third special session, two Democratic state senators sued to block the Legislature from redistricting in a special session … Continue reading →

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Buc-ee’s keeps on with the logo lawsuits

Posted on October 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Almost as on brand for them as the beaver logo itself. Texas mega-chain Buc-ee’s is suing a Sugar Land man over claims that his “Buky’s” gas station and convenience stores are “confusingly similar” to the brand’s famous logo. The trademark … Continue reading →

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Redistricting lawsuit #2 filed

Posted on October 28, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This one focuses on just the Congressional map. An organization affiliated with Eric Holder, who was attorney general in the Obama administration, has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to overturn the state’s GOP-drawn redistricting map for Congress on behalf of … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS will hear SB8 appeals

Posted on October 23, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Both of them, on November 1. The law remains annoyingly in effect until then. The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to fast-track two Texas cases involving the state’s near-total ban on abortion, but refused to halt the law from being … Continue reading →

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Third Court rejects Paxton attempt to kill whistleblower lawsuit

Posted on October 23, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A state appeals court found Thursday that former deputies of Attorney General Ken Paxton who were fired after accusing the Republican official of abusing his office are protected under the state’s whistleblower law, allowing their lawsuit against Paxton to … Continue reading →

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Texas takes its shot at Roe v Wade

Posted on October 22, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We were always headed in this direction. It was just a matter of when we were going to get there. Texas on Thursday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to keep in place a law that imposes a near-total ban on … Continue reading →

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Chick-Fil-A and the “heartbeat” lawsuits

Posted on October 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’d forgotten all about this. A case that’s before the Texas Supreme Court this fall could have strong implications for the future of the state’s newly adopted abortion ban, the most prohibitive in the nation. The suit relates to a … Continue reading →

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First lawsuit filed against the redistricting maps

Posted on October 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Why wait? We already know they suck. Before they’ve even been signed into law, Texas’ new maps for Congress and the statehouse are being challenged in court for allegedly discriminating against Latino voters. Filing the first federal lawsuit Monday in … Continue reading →

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Justice Department officially asks SCOTUS to halt SB8

Posted on October 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The stakes are clear. Now we get to see if SCOTUS has any respect for the law. The U.S. Supreme Court is considering whether to take up abortion providers’ challenge to Texas’ near-total abortion ban sooner than the high court … Continue reading →

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More on the Spring Branch ISD single member district lawsuit

Posted on October 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good story from KTRK. The unofficial dividing line for the two sides: I-10 running through the district. With two boys in the district, Carla Cooper-Molano has seen the battle scars, and she wants someone on the school board who represents … Continue reading →

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SCOTx puts San Antonio ISD’s vaccine mandate on pause

Posted on October 17, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Ken Paxton finally gets what he wants. The Texas Supreme Court temporarily halted San Antonio Independent School District’s staff vaccine mandate on Thursday, a day before the deadline for all employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The ruling comes two … Continue reading →

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Justice Department goes to SCOTUS over SB8

Posted on October 16, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

As expected. The Biden administration will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to stop enforcement of Texas’ near-total abortion ban, according to a Friday statement from a U.S. Department of Justice spokesperson. Courts have pingponged back and forth on the law’s … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit does the expected with the SB8 appeal

Posted on October 15, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Was it ever in doubt? Texas’ near-total abortion ban can continue to be enforced while the law’s constitutionality is decided, a panel of federal appellate judges ordered late Thursday. The three justices of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals … Continue reading →

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Justice Department files its brief with the Fifth Circuit

Posted on October 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck. They’re going to need a lot of it. The Biden administration urged the courts again to step in and suspend a new Texas law that has banned most abortions since early September, as clinics hundreds of miles away remain … Continue reading →

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The fate of the Paxton trial location is once again with the CCA

Posted on October 12, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

As you recall, the very long-awaited securities fraud trail of Ken Paxton is ticketed to go back to Collin County after the First Court of Appeals denied a request for an en banc hearing to reconsider the court’s previous ruling … Continue reading →

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Federal lawsuit over mask mandate ban in schools has its hearing

Posted on October 11, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

A big case with potential national implications. School district leaders should have the right to make decisions about mask mandates based on the needs of their students and local coronavirus spread data, attorneys argued Wednesday in federal court. Lawyers with … Continue reading →

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We wait until at least Tuesday for a chance at justice with SB8

Posted on October 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

In case you missed it. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals late Friday temporarily allowed Texas’ near-total abortion ban — the strictest in the nation — to again be enforced after freezing a federal judge’s temporary block of the … Continue reading →

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State appeals SB8 restraining order to Fifth Circuit

Posted on October 9, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure they expect the usual room service from the appeals court. It’s just a matter of how quickly they can get it. Texas asked a federal appeals court Friday to step in “as soon as possible” to restore the … Continue reading →

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